Blue Network: DNCC scheme offers hope for canals in Dhaka north
Dhaka North City Corporation has taken an initiative to create an integrated "blue network", connecting and reviving all the canals in 18 newly added wards to resolve the city's perennial waterlogging.
A project to build the network has already got Ecnec approval and a study has also been carried out in this regard.
The study, conducted by Troyee Associates led by planner Akhtar Mahmud and funded by DNCC, identified 48 existing canals in the 18 wards.
DNCC Mayor Md Atiqul Islam said they have planned the "blue network" to protect these canals and would carry out excavation, plant trees and construct walkways and bicycle lanes on the banks.
"We will create a connectivity to build a water network," he told this newspaper recently.
He further said they would gradually restore all the canals in DNCC areas and have already started removing encroachers from the waterbodies. "This is a challenging job but it will be done and encroachers will be evicted," he added.
"We have already formed an expert committee to make people aware."
The Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (Ecnec) has approved a Tk 4,025 crore project, including road construction and the "blue network", and it will be implemented through the army, he noted.
Architect Fazle Reza Sumon, one of the consultants of the project, said, "We have submitted a proposal to the DNCC so that all the existing waterbodies of the new wards remain intact even after 50 years.
"We have proposed to create some new retention areas, and that existing five acres of waterbodies including ponds will have to be either acquired or protected through transfer of development rights.
"We have prepared a DPP of Tk 857 crore to develop the blue network."
Under the new initiative, the DNCC will now develop the Naria-Beraid canal. Its length is 9.5km, while the width ranges from 12.53m to 115m, which is very unsuitable for natural water flow.
The canal originates from the Balu river and then runs through Aftabnagar, Badda, Shahjadpur, Sutibhola, Satarkul, Kathaldia and Beraid areas.
Rampant filling at different points, encroachment by illegal occupants, indiscriminate waste dumping and illegal fish farming have put the waterbody in dire state, according to the study.
DNCC will demarcate the canal, excavate it to increase navigability, and re-establish interconnectivity between different parts of the waterbody.
"If you want to save the areas like Aftabnagar, Badda, Shahjadpur, Sutibhola, Satarkul, Kathaldia and Beraid from acute waterlogging, the canal from Naria to Beraid will have to be protected properly."
According to the study, Satarkul canal in Badda is another waterbody which was been significantly choked at different points because of grabbing. The Sutibhola part of the canal has been filled up and lost its link with other parts almost completely.
In Beraid, developers have kept alive some canals to carry sand for their housing projects but part of the Naria-Beraid canal in the area has mostly been encroached upon.
In the project, there are plans for walkways and bicycle lanes along the two banks of the canal. Seating areas, tents, parks, floating decks, children's playgrounds and terminals have also been designed.
Besides, adequate dustbins, lighting, CCTV cameras and watchtowers were recommended.
Though several reclamation attempts have been made, a more comprehensive approach is necessary to save this waterbody, one of the most important canals in the DNCC area, said architect Sumon.
Hopefully, he added, this large-scale project will be able to resuscitate the entire canal.
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